WWE Raw Results, Winners, Live Grades and Highlights Before Survivor Series 2025

Five days before Survivor Series: War Games from Petco Park in San Diego, WWE Raw hit the Netflix airwaves with a go-home show hellbent on driving anticipation and excitement for the premium live event.

Roman Reigns kicked off the show, Dominik Mysterio sent one last message to John Cena ahead of their Intercontinental Championship at the event, and the Last Time Is Now Tournament continued with Gunther battling Carmelo Hayes and Solo Sikoa squaring off with Penta.

What went down, who emerged with momentum on their side, and how did each match and segment grade out? Find out with this recap of the November 24 broadcast.

Lineup

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Announced in advance of Monday's show were:

• Roman Reigns promo
• War Games Advantage Match
• The Last Time is Now Tournament: Carmelo Hayes vs. Gunther
• The Last Time is Now Tournament: Penta vs. Solo Sikoa
• Rey Mysterio vs. JD McDonagh
• Dominik Mysterio promo
• Becky Lynch promo

Roman Reigns Kicked Off Raw

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Last Time in Action: Roman Reigns lost to Bronson Reed (Crown Jewel, October 11)

The OTC kicked off Raw, ready to address his return to the company and his place in Saturday's War Games match, when Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes interrupted to a thunderous ovation.

Rhodes asked his longtime rival what benefit Reigns gets for partnering with him, CM Punk, and The Usos at War Games. "I've been in this war. You're just now joining," The Tribal Chief responded.

Reigns cited his family, The Usos, and his investment in them as the reason he came back to do battle with The Vision, Logan Paul, Drew McIntyre, and Brock Lesnar.

World heavyweight champion CM Punk interrupted next.

The Best in the World took exception to Rhodes calling it "his team," telling him he can be the quarterback on Fridays but he is the champ on Mondays.

Reigns said it does not matter whose team it is and ended his promo by further sewing the seeds of dissension by saying "that title would look so much better on my shoulder," without eluding to which championship he was referring to.

Grade

B

Top Moments and Takeaways

Survivor Series has, in recent years, produced a big moment or angle that has propelled WWE television forward and set the stage for WrestleMania season. Could it be Reigns' pursuit of championship gold, even at the expense of his War Games team.

This was a fairly strong opening segment in that it addressed the questions the WWE Universe had about the three alpha dogs on the babyface team with a reminder that they still do not like each other and nothing about their history has changed. It was on point, did what it needed to, and laid the groundwork for The OTC to go after either champion in the near future.

Last Time is Now Tournament: Carmelo Hayes vs. Gunther

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Last Time in Action: Gunther defeated Je'Von Evans (Raw, November 17); Carmelo Hayes defeated Bronson Reed (SmackDown, November 21)

Fresh off an upset victory over Reed on SmackDown, Hayes started hot, taking the fight to The Ring General from the opening bell, showing a renewed tenacity and aggression not seen since his NXT title reign.

A chest-caving chop halted the underdog's momentum and put Gunther in the proverbial driver's seat entering the commercial break.

Gunther dominated afterward, but a powerbomb attempt ended with a tornado DDT from Hayes, leaving both men down ahead of a second timeout.

The action intensified coming out of the second break, with Hayes launching himself around the ring and ringside area, looking to wipe out his opponent and catch him just enough off-guard to secure the upset win.

Back inside the squared circle, the NXT product attempted the Drive By but Gunther avoided it and applied the sleeper. When Hayes fought out of that, the Austrian-born competitor transitioned into a powerbomb for the pinfall victory.

Result

Gunther defeated Hayes

Grade

B

Top Moments and Takeaways

This was another extraordinary match featuring Gunther, who is pound-for-pound the best wrestler in WWE today. For the second week in a row, he took a dynamic young talent, put them over by letting them shine, and still emerged the victor, all while elevating his opponent's credibility with the WWE Universe. If the Ring General is the Superstar to retire John Cena, fans should expect an all-timer in the Unseen Seventeen's final contest.

Backstage, The Usos criticized their War Games opponents for not being on the same page, then volunteered themselves to represent the team against Drew McIntyre and Logan Paul in the main event.

Dominik Mysterio Promo

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Last Time in Action: Dominik Mysterio, JD McDonagh, and Finn Bálor lost to John Cena, Rey Mysterio, and Sheamus (Raw, November 17)

Ahead of his Survivor Series showdown with John Cena, Dominik Mysterio hit the ring to address the biggest premium live event match of his career.

Dirty Dom promised to embarrass Cena and take back his IC title in San Diego before informing the fans in Oklahoma City that The Greatest of All Time was not in the building tonight.

Cue "The Time is Now," a big pop from the fans, and a person of short stature dressed like Cena. After a brief verbal back-and-forth, Mysterio attacked, leaving the Cena impersonator lying in a crumbled heap.

Rey Mysterio hit the ring to make the save, sending his son scurrying to the floor for sanctuary.

Grade

C-

Top Moments and Takeaways

This was an ode to Cena's mockery of Kurt Angle back in 2003 head of their match at that year's No Mercy but it fell flat. It was too short to be meaningful and felt out of place on WWE TV 22 years later.

The pop for Rey was otherworldly and proves that, all these years later, the 2023 Hall of Famer still has it.

Rey Mysterio vs. JD McDonagh

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Last Time in Action: Rey Mysterio, John Cena, and Sheamus defeated JD McDonagh, Finn Bálor, and Dominik Mysterio (Raw, Novemebr 17)

The continuation of Rey's rejuvenated rivalry with his son saw the Hall of Famer square off with Dominik's Judgment Day teammate, JD McDonagh, in singles competition.

The Iron Lung controlled the match, really shining as he worked over his more experienced opponent. Even when The Master of the 619 attempted to comeback, McDonaugh cut him off with a Spanish Fly.

Late in the match, though, a miscommunication between the heel and partner Bálor allowed Mysterio to deliver 619 and a springboard splash for the pinfall victory.

Result

Mysterio defeated McDonagh

Grade

C

Top Moments and Takeaways

This one was hurt by the commercial break right in the middle of it, with no real heat portion for McDonagh and a rushed comeback late. Mysterio winning was the right call, but it happened so fast that it did not the impact that it would have with a little extra time to breathe.

Oddly, Dominik was not involved in the finish, which could play into further dissension within Judgment Day if WWE Creative plays it right. Especially since it looked like Dirty Dom left his boys to do his work for him.

Backstage, Brock Lesnar arrived to the arena.

Women's War Games Hype

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Becky Lynch, Nia Jax, Lash Legend, and women's tag team champions Kairi Sane and Asuka hit the ring to hype up Saturday's Women's War Games match.

Lynch launched into a rant about the injustice of her loss to Maxxine Dupri last Monday night and issued a warning to AJ Lee, claiming the biggest mistake the former Divas champion ever made was locking herself in a cage with The Man.

She hyped up her team while still making it all about herself until Rhea Ripley's music played and The Eradicator interrupted Big Time Becks. Iyo Sky followed, as did Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss, before AJ Lee arrived on the scene.

"The old AJ would have come down here and torn your face off but, luckily for you, therapy works," Lee told the former women's intercontinental champion.

Ripley blasted Jax with a microphone to the face and a brawl between the two teams broke out. The babyfaces cleared the ring and Sky added a moonsault to all of the heels except Lynch, who watched in disbelief as her Survivor Series opponents stood tall.

Grade

B

Top Moments and Takeaways

Lynch carried this segment on the mic and was the clear star. She was on an entirely different level and has complete control of her on-screen persona. She was outstanding here.

The babyfaces stood tall, which would typically indicate that the heels would go over Saturday. Considering that is the more likely outcome in the men's match, is it possible that the villains win both War Games matches?

Last Time Is Now Tournament Match: Penta vs. Solo Sikoa

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Last Time in Action: Penta defeated Finn Bálor (SmackDown, November 21); Solo Sikoa defeated Dolph Ziggler (Raw, November 17)

In the second quarterfinal tournament match of the evening, Penta battled Solo Sikoa with a chance for a date with Gunther in the semifinals.

Ahead of the commercial break, Penta delivered a headscissors from the guardrail to Sikoa but appeared to have injured his shoulder, with medical personnel approaching entering the timeout.

Back from the break, ring announcer Alicia Taylor announced that Penta was no longer able to compete and therefore, Sikoa was the winner.

Result

Sikoa defeated Penta via doctor stoppage

Grade

Incomplete

Top Moments and Takeaways

An absolute bummer for Penta, who likely would have won here and rekindled his rivalry with Gunther in what may have been one of the better TV matches of the year.

War Games Advantage Match: The Usos vs. Drew McIntyre and Logan Paul

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Last Time in Action: The Usos lost to CM Punk and LA Knight (Raw, October 6); Drew McIntyre and Logan Paul lost to Cody Rhodes and John Cena via DQ (SmackDown, August 8)

The interval advantage was at stake in the main event of Monday's show, where Jimmy and Jey Uso battled McIntyre and Paul in a high-stakes bout.

The former tag team champions and greatest team of their generation dominated early and often, taking the fight to Paul. A tag to McIntyre, though, allowed the heels to seize control of the bout.

The Scottish Warrior and Maverick wore Jey Uso out but a hot tag to Jimmy finally sparked a babyface comeback. Big Jim scored a near-fall on Paul and later, delivered the Uso Splash that should have won it for the twins. Instead, McIntyre made the save, breaking up the pinfall attempt.

Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed arrived at ringside, only to be greeted by Cody Rhodes and CM Punk. As the action broke down outside the ring, Paul recovered and stole the win with a schoolboy rollup on Jimmy.

The brawl continued after the bell until Roman Reigns appeared. He uploaded with a barrage of Superman Punches on the opposition, then stood tall with his teammates as credits rolled.

Until, that is, Brock Lesnar appeared, slipped during his entrance, and joined his teammates in the ring for the big pull-apart brawl.

Result

McIntyre and Paul defeated The Usos

Grade

C

Top Moments and Takeaways

Like most of the in-ring action tonight, this was perfectly acceptable wrestling that kept everyone safe and produced the desired outcome. It does not necessarily make for the most exciting match-up in the world, but at least it was entertaining, if nothing else.

Lesnar stumbling and falling during his entrance is the perfect representation of this run to this point. At least he laughed it off.

Overall Grade

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WWE featured all of the talent involved in Saturday's Survivor Series: War Games in meaningful segments, outside of Stephanie Vaquer and Nikki Bella, but this still felt like a considerable step down from last week's incredible Madison Square Garden show.

The wrestling was not as good, even if Gunther and Hayes tore the house down, the angles felt like retreads, and the result was a show that did what it needed to but failed to match the quality of last week's best.

Grade: C